Four years ago, Kazuma Kannagi was defeated by his cousin Ayano Kannagi for the right to be the possessor of Enraiha, a sword passed down in the Kannagi family, a powerful and prestigious clan of fire mages. His pathetic defeat and complete failure at the fire arts resulted in his banishment from his family and unspoken exile from Japan.

Now named Kazuma Yagami, he suddenly returns after four years for a casual demon-hunting job, only now, he's somehow become a snarky, crazily-powerful wind mage who easily manhandles demons and his former family alike. And about this time, Kannagi members just happen to start being murdered by a powerful wind mage...

Adapted into anime from a series of light novels by the late Takahiro Yamato.

Arrogant Fire Magic Clan: Being descended from a mage who made a contract with the Spirit King of Fire has given the Kannagi clan very big egos. Except for Ren and Juugo, everyone in the Kannagi family has some degree of a superiority complex. They believe fire to be the most powerful element, thinking lowly of wind magic in particular. A branch family member even goes so far as to think the lives of Kannagis are inherently worth more than the Fuugas.

Bodyguard Crush: Ayano's father uses the excuse of hiring Kazuma as Ayano's bodyguard to keep the two together in hopes of pairing them off. Though Kazuma is wise to the scheme from the very beginning and tends to let Ayano learn lessons the hard way (both for her own good and for his own amusement), it still works.

Cloning Blues: Ayumi. She was only created as a sacrifice to prevent Mt. Fuji from erupting, and would die soon even if the ritual didn't take place. Thus, she was unable to continue her sweet subplot with Ren.

Clothing Damage: Ayano's clothes get shredded in a fight with the first Big Bad, and of course she accidentally ends up straddling Kazuma as Ren runs up...

Her dress also gets heavily damaged during her fight with Katherine and Metatron.

Date Peepers: Although she vehemently denies it, Ayano goes into Clingy Jealous Girl mode in episode 5 when she sees Kazuma with another woman. And again later when he's with Misao. She even calls Ren up to help her spy on him.

Ayano's two friends spy on her while she's on a date with Kazuma in episode 13.

Elemental Rock–Paper–Scissors: Each of the four elements has its own strengths. Fire is good at raw power and purification. Wind is good at reconnaissance and concealment; Kazuma uses it to fly, but maybe he's just awesome like that. Earth can detect people touching the ground and cause earthquakes. Water mages don't appear in the anime.

Getting Crap Past the Radar: Oh boy, loads of it. This subtitles don't really match up with the dubbing. For instance, and Misao says something about how she's willing to do anything to thank him. In the subtitles, it outright says she's willing to sleep with him.

Heroic B.S.O.D.: In the novels, Ayano, after her friends shrink back from her in terror when she first demonstrates her power in front of them. She then gets enveloped by a puny slime monster that shouldn't have had a chance, and Kazuma has to bail her out and restore her confidence.

Hero Insurance: Often played straight, but averted in at least one instance where the Kannagi family covers damages caused by one of the fights.

Hold the Line: Ayano has to buy Kazuma some time against the first arc's Big Bad while he charges up a special attack and just barely makes it. Subverted afterward when he reveals that he had been ready to attack for quite some time but wanted Ayano to get knocked around a bit some training in.

Human Shield: Ayano jokingly uses Ren as this in episode 7 in an attempt to stop or at least delay Kazuma long enough. However, neither Ren nor Kazuma takes it very seriously and the scene ends up being Played for Laughs.

I Have No Son: Genma says he has only one son Ren, and is technically right as he has legally disowned Kazuma.

Indirect Kiss: Happens when Kazuma asks Ayano to hold his canned coffee for him while dealing with some rabble.

Indy Ploy: Ren to Ayano: "Oh great. Please tell me you have at least some idea of what you're gonna do..."

Intimate Healing: Done by Kazuma to Ayano when he gives her medichine through a kiss.

Love Triangle: Ren with his two best friends (a guy and a girl) is a Type 3, while Kazuma with Ayano and Katherine is a Type 4 (in the anime only; Katherine doesn't exist in the light novels).

Manipulative Bastard: Kazuma, particularly with regards to Ayano. After watching the anime, one might get the impression that he deliberately put Ayano into desperate situations so that she could develop her powers.

Market-Based Title: A weird aversion. The English dub is marketed as Kaze no Stigma, despite the fact that it's perfectly easy to translate as "Stigma of the Wind."

Mask Power: Averted: Kazuma runs into a masked, theatrical bad guy, recognizes him as a former minion to a guy he defeated in his backstory, makes fun of his costume, and gets ready to kick his ass.

Masquerade: Magic, demons, and whatnot are kept secret from the general public. Stretches disbelief in the modern setting, considering the demons the mages are hired to exterminate and the occasional reckless mage. A giant flaming statue commanded by an heiress with the high ground fighting a demon down a city street—not to mention the occasional collapsing hotel—can not be that easy to cover up.

In all fairness, Catherine's recklessness when it comes to public uses of her powers is actually noted by the Special Investigations Unit (who know about magic), and the police go to great pains to cover up public uses of magic, releasing doctored footage of building collapses and cordoning areas off in order to prevent public witnesses when there are huge magical battles about to go down, with the forewarning of the Kannagi family. That said, it'd be kinda difficult to explain the Pandemonium arc away as explosions and a lightshow.

Might Makes Right: The Kannagi have this philosophy. Kazuma even tells them that because they ignore right and wrong, the Kannagi subsequently have no right to complain foul when someone bigger and stronger pushes them around.

Mistaken for Murderer: Kazuma is lured back to Japan at the beginning of a series to set this up. Given that he is an extraordinarily powerful wind mage with a very good reason to hate the Kannagi clan (the feeling's mutual), most of the clan naturally turns against him when family members start being murdered once he returns.

Missing Mom: It appears that Kazuma Ren and Ayano where only raised by their fathers. To be fair, Kazuma and Ren's mother does show up...for all of 30 seconds in a flashback.

Morality Pet: Kazuma's brother, Ren. Kazuma tends not to be very interested in saving the day until Ren gets into trouble, as he tends to do from time to time.

Noble Demon: Kazuma plays the part of a mercenary, is not above extorting gold out of pixies (who share his wind-alignment), enjoys pushing Ayano's buttons, and is content to sit in the background while others run around... but in the end, he's a pretty nice guy.

Not a Date: It's not a date, it's a mission... that just happens to be at an amusement park with no demons in sight. Powerful fire mages with flaming swords need bodyguards too, really. Ayano's father engineers these convenient missions in the hopes of pairing her and Kazuma off; Kazuma isn't fooled but goes along anyway for the money and amusement of trolling Ayano.

Panty Shot: Ayano, who wears short skirts, and stands next to a powerful wind mage. Also, she seems to love high-kicks.

Parental Abandonment: Kazuma's dad disinherited him after he lost the succession "duel" against Ayano. His mom refused to give him any sympathy either, both denying that he was their son. Kazuma immediately sends his dad to the hospital after their reunion. It's a subversion, though. His father disowning Kazuma was to protect Kazuma and allow him to truly grow: had Kazuma remained a Kannagi, he would have been bound to become a sub-par fire mage. Considering how the family is structured, this would have put him in a very poor position. By being disowned, Kazuma was then free to find the branch of magic that best suited him: allowing him to become a master wind mage. In several scenes where Kazuma's father voices his private thoughts, it's clear he's rather proud of his prodigal son.

Pet the Dog: Kazuma visiting his father at the hospital after beating him in battle, and telling him to take care of himself; practically magnaminous behavior considering he was disowned by the old man.

Red Eyes, Take Warning: Kazuma has this for most of the series, but the situation gets especially dire after his first visit to Pandemonium.

Revenge Before Reason: Misao, whose desire for revenge against Kazuma for his role in her brother's death goes so far as to kill hundreds of people without a second thought in order to gain enough power to kill him. She gets better

Shoot the Dog: Kazuma, more so in the novels of course. In the first, when he gets surrounded by the few members of the wind clan who remained loyal to the Kannagi family and were subsequently mind-controlled and given crude weapons, Kazuma simply slices off all their heads in order to terrify the others and avoid even more bloodshed. In the last anime arc, he shreds the humans who were irreversibly turned into youma.

Stock Sound Effects: Plentiful. Starts in the first minutes of the first episode and continues all the way through.

Summon Magic: Certain magicians summon Spirit Beasts to fight on their behalf. The cost, however, is that most Beast Users suffer when their beasts are injured.

Superpowered Evil Side: Subverted: Although he seems crazy powerful, Ayano notes that he is actually weaker than he was before, and therefore isn't so far above her in power that it's pointless to be scared of him. Judging by the lack of technique or his more powerful abilities, she's almost certainly correct.

Technicolor Fire: Most Kannagis use standard yellow-orange fire, but Genma and Ayano have been seen using blue and red flames, respectively.

True to real life, Genma's blue flame is considered the most powerful fire in the clan.

Juugo, Ayano's father, has purple flame which is said more powerful than Genma's blue flame. The only reason why Genma is considered now as the strongest practitioner in the Kannagi is because Juugo has an accident which made him crippled.

"The Reason You Suck" Speech: Kazuma gives a verbal beat down to the Kannagi when he explains why the Fuuga turned on them. For 300 years the Kannagi treated the Fuuga and their wind magic like second class citizens, when in reality wind magic has properties that are very useful in support to fire magic. He also proceeds to tell them the Kannagi beat down on the Fuuga because they were weaker. And so the Kannagi have no place to complain once a strong Fuuga did the same to them.

Unresolved Sexual Tension: Ayano does not realize what she wants, she calls Kazuma a jerk, but tries to hold his hand at an amusement park, blushes all the time and flies into a towering rage if Kazuma makes a move on her or if she sees him with another woman.

Witch Species: Mages come in four varieties, each of which is inheritable. The Kannagi clan began as a fire clan when its head made a contract with the Fire Lord, gaining the Enraiha sword and ensuring that his children would be fire mages, too. Specialties also exist within each element, such as focusing on curses, barriers, summoning, or just fighting power.

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